Samuel Williams

A young man with dark, wavy hair and an introspective gaze emerges from a shadowy background. Allston, often called the “American Titian” for his rich handling of color and light, was the leading American Romantic painter of the early nineteenth century. This portrait, painted during his years in London where he studied at the Royal Academy, reveals the influence of Sir Thomas Lawrence and the English portrait tradition, while the moody chiaroscuro reflects Allston’s debt to Venetian masters.